Profound Thoughts for the Long Weekend

I received this gift many years ago, and I think there is profound wisdom here.

1. Give up your need to always be right.

So many of us can't stand the idea of being wrong—wanting always to be right—even at the risk of ending great relationships or causing a great deal of stress and pain for us and others. It's just not worth it.

Whenever you feel the 'urgent' need to jump into a fight over who is right and who is wrong, ask yourself this question: "Would I rather be right, or would I rather be kind?" Wayne Dyer. What differences will that make? Is your ego that big?

2. Give up your need for control.

Be willing to give up your need to control everything that happens to you and around you—situations, events, people, etc. Whether they are loved ones, coworkers, or just strangers you meet on the street – allow them to be. Allow everything and everyone to be just as they are, and you will see how much better it will make you feel. "By letting it go, it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try, the world is beyond winning." Lao Tzu.

3. Give up on blame.

Give up on your need to blame others for what you have or don't have, for what you feel or don't feel. Stop giving your powers away and start taking responsibility for your life.

4. Give up your self-defeating self-talk.

How many people are hurting themselves because of their negative, polluted, and repetitive self-defeating mindset? Don't believe everything your mind is telling you—especially if it's negative and self-defeating. You are better than that. "The mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Misused, however, it becomes very destructive." Eckhart Tolle.

5. Give up your limiting beliefs about what you can or cannot do, about what is possible or impossible.

You will no longer allow your limiting beliefs to keep you stuck in the wrong place. Spread your wings and fly! "A belief is not an idea held by the mind; it is an idea that holds the mind" Elly Roselle.

6. Give up complaining.

Give up your constant need to complain about many things—people, situations, and events make you unhappy, sad, and depressed. No problem can make you miserable unless you allow it. It's not the situation that triggers those feelings in you, but how you view it. Never underestimate the power of positive thinking.

7. Give up the luxury of criticism.

Give up your need to criticize things, events, or people different from you. We are all different, yet we are all the same. We all want to be happy, we all want to love and be loved, and we all want to be understood.

8. Give up your need to impress others.

Stop trying to be something you're not just to make others like you. It doesn't work this way. The moment you stop trying so hard to be something that you're not. The moment you take off all your masks, the moment you accept and embrace the real you, you will find people come to you.

9. Give up your resistance to change.

Change is good. The change will help you move from A to B. Change will help you improve your life and the lives of those around you. Follow your bliss, embrace change—don't resist it. "Follow your bliss, and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls" Joseph Campbell.

10. Give up labels.

Stop labeling those things, people, or events that you don't understand as weird or different, and try opening your mind, little by little. Minds only work when open. "The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don't know anything about." Wayne Dyer.

11. Give up on your fears.

Fear is just an illusion. It doesn't exist—you created it. It's all in your mind. Correct the inside, and the outside will fall into place. "its only thing we have to fear is fear itself." Franklin D. Roosevelt.

12. Give up your excuses.

Send them packing and fire them. You no longer need excuses. Often, we limit ourselves because of the many reasons we use. Instead of growing and working on improving ourselves and our lives, we get stuck, lying to ourselves, using all kinds of excuses—excuses that 99.9% of the time are not even authentic.

13. Give up the past.

It's hard. Especially when the past looks so much better than the present and the future looks so frightening, you must consider that the present moment is all you have and will ever have. Stop deluding yourself. Be present in everything you do and enjoy life. After all, life is a journey, not a destination. Have a clear vision for the future, prepare yourself, but always be present in the now.

14. Give up attachment.

A concept that is hard to grasp. You get better and better with time and practice. The moment you detach yourself from all things (and that doesn't mean you give up your love for them—because love and attachment have nothing to do with one another, passion comes from a place of fear while loving. Real love is pure, kind, and selfless, where there is love, there can't be fear, and because of that, attachment and love cannot coexist) you become so peaceful, tolerant, kind, and serene. You will get to a place where you will be able to understand without trying—a state beyond words.

15. Give up living your life to other people's expectations.

Way too many people live a life that is not theirs to live. They live their lives according to what others think is best for them. They ignore their inner voice, that inner calling. Not only that, but they are so busy pleasing everybody by living up to other people's expectations that they lose control over their lives. They forget what makes them happy, what they want, and what they need. Eventually, they forget about themselves. You have one life—this one right now—you must live it, own it, and especially don't let other people's opinions distract you from your path.